Harbor Tale
by Bri Nara
Summary: Makoto one day sees a boy swimming out in the ocean at night. However... Mermaid AU, Merman!Haru.


**Beautiful Relay Production**

_I've been trying to write this since August, I think, of 2013. I think this should prove why I'm not meant to write mermaid AUs... I don't own Free._

* * *

Makoto's eyes wandered about the surface of the water. With a sigh, he started kicking his small legs over the edge of the dock. The moonlight reflected off the choppy waves that slapped against the dock's beams

The boy had his cheeks in his hands. He was awaiting his fisherman friend to return. It had been several days since he had cast off so now Makoto was getting worried. There had been a harsh storm the night before so that had only added to it.

Suddenly, green eyes met blue.

They were as blue as the ocean itself and they were staring right back at him.

Makoto scrambled away from the edge of the dock. Out of the water, a head emerged. The head of a boy with ocean-blue eyes and black hair who was staring blankly at him.

Makoto blinked at him.

What was a boy doing in the water? It was the middle of the night! It would be cold!

"Hey!" Makoto called out. The boy merely continued staring at him. "What are you doing in there?"

The boy tilted his head to the side and his eyebrows were raised, as if he were asking 'Why aren't you?'

Makoto leaned over the edge and stretched out his hand. "Come on! Get out of the water! You might catch a cold!"

The boy looked confusedly at the hand. One of his hands emerged from the sea and hesitantly reached back to grab it.

"Maaaaakoooooo!"

The boy flinched back. His eyes were wide with surprise and fear. He turned around and dove into the water.

Makoto was about to call out to him to come back, but he noticed something shimmering in the moonlight for a brief second when the boy dived.

A tail.

"Mako!" Nagisa said as he ran up to his friend. "Your mom sent me to tell you that it's getting late and you should go home!"

Makoto, however, was frozen in shock as he continued staring at the water.

Nagisa began staring at the same spot, tilting his head in befuddlement.

"What'cha staring at, Mako?" he asked.

Makoto finally snapped out of his trance enough to grab his smaller friend's shoulders. "N-Nagisa, did you see that?"

"See what?"

"The tail! The tail that boy had!" Makoto had a wide smile on his face.

Nagisa's brow furrowed in confusion. "Tail? You mean like a mermaid?"

"Yeah…" he said dreamily. His smile got even wider. "Nagisa, I just met a mermaid!"

Nagisa laughed nervously and removed his friend's hands from his shoulders. "Your mom was right, it really is late. You already started dreaming." Nagisa started hauling him toward his house.

"Wait! But Nagisa! I didn't even get to ask him his name yet! Wait!"

As Makoto was lead away, a head poked out of the water. Blue eyes curiously followed the brunette.

* * *

The next morning, three small boys were sitting at the dock. The two younger boys were staring boredly at their senior, who was eagerly staring out to the open sea.

"Maaaakooo!" Nagisa whined. "What are we still doing out here? It's almost lunchtime!"

"Nagisa, we just had breakfast a while ago," Rei sighed.

"Guys, wait!" Makoto said frantically. "I want you two to see the mermaid!"

"Mermaid?" Rei pushed up his glasses. "You do realize that mermaids are scientifically impossible, right?"

"But I _did _see a mermaid!" Makoto huffed. "Look, he'll come out of the water any second now!" When a moment passed without him appearing, he repeated "_Any _second now!"

Suddenly they heard rapid footsteps heading toward them. They all turned their heads to see a boy with gray hair running. He stopped before them, panting with his hands on his knees.

"Aiichiro?"

Nagisa tilted his head. "What is it, Ai?"

"It's... It's... Rin, his...!" he said between gasps. "The fishermen...!"

Fishermen...?

Makoto's eyes widened.

He went up and put his hands on Aiichiro's shoulders. "What about the fishermen?"

"Come on!"

All the boys scrambled off the dock, running to the town.

A head finally popped out of the water.

* * *

There were people in white along the dock. Their heads were bowed. With tears running down some of their faces.

He could see Makoto at the end of the line. The boy would cast nervous glances at the ocean then flinch his head back in fear.

* * *

Makoto was older now. He strolled casually down the sidewalk, taking a short look at the sea.

Ever since his fisherman friend had died, he avoided the ocean. He was afraid of it. He didn't go to the dock to go stare at the sea anymore because it reminded him too much of the day he received the bad news.

While now, he had more control over his fear, he would much rather stay away from the ocean's grip. A pool's water was much more predictable. Much more tame. He'd rather stick with that.

Right as he was about to pass by an old dock, he noticed something out of the corner of his eye.

Someone was hanging off the edge.

It was a boy around his age. His chest was bare. He was holding himself up on the edge of the dock with merely the strength in his torso; his lower half dangling over the water presumably. His head was hanging down, facing the wooden surface.

Makoto rushed up to him and knelt down. He held out a hand to him. "D-Do you need some help?"

The boy looked him in the eye. Makoto noticed that they were a familiar shade of ocean blue before they disappeared with a splash.

"Hey! Wait!"

Makoto leaned over the edge of the dock. He blinked in surprise when the boy's torso emerged from the water. The boy didn't look startled or anything. He looked calm.

"Come on!" Makoto said. He stretched a hand to him.

Then he did something unexpected.

He gave Makoto a sad sort of smile and dived into the water.

Bright blue scales glistened in the sunlight for a moment before disappearing.

Makoto stared at him in wide-eyed shock as the boy's head came back out of the water.

"You... a... a mer... mermaid...?" Makoto sputtered out lamely.

He nodded.

"Wow..."

* * *

"Oh! Sorry! I forgot to ask earlier, but do you have a name?"

Makoto returned the next day to see that the merman was still there. He was chattering away to the merman staring at him from the water and yet the other still hadn't said a word.

The merman tilted his head and gave him a blank look.

"Ahaha... Can you even talk?" he asked nervously.

The merman furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"Talk. You know..." He pointed to his own mouth. "This thing that I'm doing."

He thought for a moment before he shrugged.

"I'll give you a name then!" Makoto rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "I'll warn you though, I'm bad at naming things..."

The merman had an almost amused look on his face as Makoto started scratching his head and screwing up his face in concentration.

"We met in the spring, right?" Before the other could shrug his reply, the boy blurted out a name. "Haruka! That could work! S-Since we met in the spring, I think! And... um... I think you could write it like 'far off' too. That would make sense since you come from the ocean." He smiled brightly. "So how about that? Would you like me to call you Haruka?"

Blue eyes seemed to light up just the slightest bit. Rather than a shrug, he answers with a firm nod.

Makoto's smile somehow turned brighter. He leaned forward and held out a hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Haruka! My name's Makoto!"

The merman gave him a look as if silently asking if introductions were really necessary. However, he took the hand anyways.

* * *

"Come on, Haruka! You can do it! 'Sea.'"

Makoto was holding up a book and facing it toward Haruka. Haruka seemed bored with the item until he had seen a copy of his home on the pages. Afterward, he was a lot more willing to cooperate with Makoto's speech lesson.

Haruka furrowed his eyebrows and moved his lips, trying to copy the human's. "S-Sea..."

Makoto clapped his hands and smiled just as enthusiastically as the first time Haruka had properly pronounced a word. "Good job!" He turned the page. He didn't notice his friend's eyes light up at the sight of the fish on the page. "Okay, next! Mackerel!"

"Ma-Makorel!" he said with sudden energy.

Makoto started blushing, causing his friend to tilt his head in confusion. He rubbed the back of his neck and laughed nervously. "Ahaha... That's... not quite right. You were supposed to say 'mackerel.' But, um..." He pointed to himself. "Can you say 'Makoto'? It's easy. Ma-ko-to."

Haruka raised his eyebrow. "Ma... Mak... Mackerel."

"Oh sure, _now _you say that!"

* * *

"Oy."

Makoto snapped out of his thoughts and looked at his friend in the water. "Ah! Yes, Haru?"

"You said that you swim, right?" he asked.

Makoto had explained to him that he swam competitively. While Haruka didn't understand the idea of swim to beat everyone, he still got the gist of it.

"Uh... In a pool but yeah."

"Come swim with me."

Makoto nearly jolted with shock and dread. He managed to hold it back and stutter a reply. "W-What?"

"You can swim. Come swim with me." He held out a hand to Makoto.

Makoto shook his head. "I can't..." he said quietly.

Haruka tilted his head. "Why not? Water likes you."

"I just can't!" Makoto snapped. Upon seeing Haruka flinch back, he immediately felt guilty. "I... I'm sorry, but... I have to go!"

Haruka watched in sadness and puzzlement as Makoto gathered up his things and left.

He promised himself to never ask Makoto to swim with him again.

* * *

Makoto didn't show up for a week. Haruka was nearly afraid that he would have to wait years to see Makoto again, but he came back.

They both avoided mentioning the water.

* * *

The next day, Haruka was late.

Makoto sat at the edge of the dock. The sun was beginning to set. He was growing more and more anxious by the minute.

What if he had offended Haruka by refusing to swim with him? And the way he practically stormed off certainly didn't help...

He didn't want to lose his friend. But the ocean...

Makoto looked up to see that a fishing boat was returning from a day of work. His insides twisted a bit more at the sight of it.

He sighed, figuring that he should just go home. He stood up and turned away from the boat.

"...elp...! H-Help...!"

Makoto froze. He thought he heard someone in trouble. He looked back at the boat, but it seemed that all the fishermen were fine.

"Help! Ma... Makoto!"

His eyes widened in shock at his looked down to the nets on the boat. Haruka's face was just sticking out of the water, his hands grabbing onto the net.

He started shaking as he imagined what would happen to Haruka if those fishermen saw him. They wouldn't be able to see each other again. He would be trapped somewhere.

Haruka needed to be free.

Makoto looked into the water and sucked in his breath. He kicked off his shoes, shut his eyes, and jumped in.

He felt the saltwater sting his eyes once he opened his eyes. He looked over at Haruka, who was staring at him in surprise.

He grabbed the sharpest rock he could see and swam up to the net. He started sawing at the net. After nearly a minute, he felt his lungs burning. He slipped the rock to Haruka and scrambled toward the surface.

Makoto gasped for breath, hoping that the fishermen hadn't noticed him yet. His hands stung from the small cuts the rock had given him.

He was about to dive back down to help Haruka when the merman's head appeared right in front of him. Makoto looked down to see a gaping hole was now in the side of the net.

Makoto grabbed onto Haruka's shoulders. "Haru! Are you okay? You're not hurt are you?"

"I'm fine," he said. "You're in the ocean."

Makoto rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah... Uh... I guess I am..."

"Can you come swim with me now then?"

Makoto smiled. "Sure."

"I told you the water liked you."

**I'm sorry, but I really _really _suck at mermaid stories. This seemed like a good idea last year.**

**Um, review, please?**


End file.
